WESSON - After dropping a 6-3 loss to Copiah-Lincoln earlier in the day on Monday, Northwest successfully avoided elimination by earning a 7-3 victory against Northeast.
In the first game, the Rangers fell behind 6-0 before rallying back with a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth.
Morgen Brewton was handed just her third loss of the season, falling to 24-3 in the circle, while Northwest finished with eight base hits.
However, the nightcap provided much more excitement, with 15 base hits from the Rangers and an electric performance in the circle from
Abby Rogers. The Brandon native compiled seven strikeouts and recorded her second complete game of the season, improving her record to 10-5.
Northwest (42-9) will now be tasked with facing a pesky, difficult Copiah-Lincoln squad all over again on Tuesday afternoon. The Rangers must defeat the Lady Wolves twice to advance to the NJCAA Region 23 Championship series, which will be against the winner of Jones College and Pearl River.
Game 1 - #3 Copiah-Lincoln 6, #11 Northwest 3
Two early home runs did little to help Northwest in Monday afternoon's loss to tournament host Copiah-Lincoln.
Co-Lin led 3-0 off the two homers and the Lady Wolves added five more runs in the bottom of the third, widening the gap to 5-0. Another home run in the fourth inning pushed the Rangers into a 6-0 deficit.
However, Northwest did not go away quietly. The Rangers made things interesting in the top of the fifth inning, breaking up the shutout and added two more in the top of the sixth, slicing the score in half before Co-Lin sealed the win.
Thenya Kennedy and
Addison Owen each finished 2-for-3 at the plate in the loss, providing four of the eight base hits for Northwest. Owen also finished with a pair of doubles and
Emma Jennings added a double of her own.
Brewton struck out two batters but allowed all of the Lady Wolves' runs in 3.1 innings.
Catelyn Brown finished with 2.2 frames of relief and allowed two base hits, but kept Co-Lin scoreless.
Emily Richarde improved her record to a whopping 20-0, issuing three walks and two earned runs.
Game 2 - #11 Northwest 7, #13 Northeast 3
A two-run home run off the bat of
Sommer Tyes set the tone for Northwest in a must-win game against Northeast.
Ellie Fryar got things started with a leadoff single through the left side, paving the way for Tyes' 18th home run of the season, tying her for second with McKaylee "K.K." Polk in single-season homers.
In the second inning, the Rangers picked up right where they left off, as Owen and Jennings reached base on back-to-back base hits. Fryar then singled through the left side, scoring both players and stretching the lead to 4-0.
Later in the inning,
Carly Dunigan stole second base and Fryar took off from third to home on the throw, adding another run in favor of Northwest.
Northeast finally responded in the bottom of the third inning, as Leah Walker blasted a three-run home run to left center, closing the gap to 5-3. However, the Tigers' momentum was halted by a groundout and a fly ball to center field.
Neither team scored again until the top of the fifth, when Tyes and
Lulu Franks reached base on back-to-back hits.
Marleigh Mancini then grounded into a double play, but Tyes scored from third to add another run for the Rangers.Â
Northeast threatened to turn the tables in the bottom of the fifth, loading the bases with one out. However, Rogers struck out Hailey Minchew and a fielder's choice from Sydney Bean ended the scoring threat from the Tigers.
In turn, the Rangers gained some momentum in the top of the sixth, adding an insurance run on Fryar's RBI-base hit to left field. From there, Rogers sent Northeast down in order in the bottom of the sixth inning and struck out two of the four batters faced in the seventh, sealing the victory for Northwest.
Rogers struck out seven batters and held the Tigers to just five base hits, while issuing one walk. Meanwhile, Fryar finished 4-for-4 with three RBIs at the top of the lineup, while Franks, Jennings, Owen and Tyes accounted for two base hits each.
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